More raw fish!

Not sure why, but I seem to enjoy repeating themes.

The sushi the other night was faboo... so I immediately put ceviche on the menu. I buy our fish from Vital Choice whenever I can, so it is all good quality and worthy of eating raw. Ceviche gives it a cooked texture, but really it is still raw, and therefore still full of all it's goodies... enzymes, delicate vitamins, probably flavanoids and such. Good stuff.

Plus it's easy.

I realize it's not quite ceviche weather where most of y'all are... but today was sunny and fairly warm, so I wanted something summery.

This time I used a recipe from Rick Bayless' Mexican Everyday. I absolutely LOVE this book, by the way (please notice I did not call it a cookbook, because although it clearly is such, it's the other stuff in it that I love with a passion. Someday I hope to meet Rick in person and thank him for being so cool.) This recipe was Ceviche Salad with Avocado, Cilantro, and Green Chile. Please notice that I said "was." Because, I am who I am, and I am psychopathically incapable of following a recipe. :-)

First of all, I used an unapproved fish. Halibut. Vital Choice has a pretty good deal on random bits of halibut, which if you sift through and cut up the bigger bits, work really well for stir fries or ceviche. Next, I used more garlic than he calls for, and honestly didn't even notice it in the final product. I also didn't have a ripe avocado available... 2 hours in a paper bag with a banana just wasn't enough for the softest rock the grocery had available. I really missed the avocado. And finally, I had the Grill Geek do up some bacon-greased sliced onions and bell pepper, as well as add a bit of char to a stack of corn tortillas. We ate our ceviche like fish tacos.

Bekki's Nummalicious Easy Ceviche

1 cup fresh lime juice (oops, another change... I used lemon, orange, and lime)
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 loose cup cilantro, roughly chopped
1 fresh jalapeno, stemmed and roughly chopped
2 generous pinches of salt
About 1 pound high-quality, sushi-grade fish: salmon, tuna, snapper (or halibut!)

Suggested:
1 ripe avocado, cubed
1 large head Boston, Bibb, or Romaine lettuce, chopped
1 sliced onion, grilled
1 sliced red bell pepper, grilled
1 or 2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
Grilled corn tortillas

Use a blender or food processor to whiz up the juice, garlic, cilantro, jalapeno, and salt until smooth. Pour over the fish (in bite-size pieces), in a non-metal bowl, and refrigerate for 1-4 hours.
Pour off the marinade, and save for ceviching something else!
Toss the lettuce with a bit of rice vinegar and olive oil, and salt to taste.

Stuff corn tortillas with all the goodies and make lots of happy noises while eating.